Indiana men’s basketball (17-11, 8-9 Big Ten) broke through late in the second half and surged to an 83-78 win over Penn State (15-14, 5-13 Big Ten) on Wednesday night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington. The victory marked the Hoosiers’ third in their last four tries, further igniting a late season push toward the NCAA Tournament.
Sixth-year senior center Oumar Ballo led Indiana with 20 points and 12 rebounds. He was joined in double figures by four other Hoosiers, as fifth-year senior guard Trey Galloway scored 16 points, redshirt sophomore guard Myles Rice and sophomore forward Mackenzie Mgbako tallied 13 points apiece and senior forward Luke Goode notched 10 points.
The Hoosiers shot a season-best 10 for 15 on 3-pointers and made 56.9% of their shots overall. Indiana won the rebound battle 30-23 and dished 24 assists, its second most this year.
Playing without junior forward Malik Reneau, who was a late scratch due to an illness, Indiana faced an early 7-1 deficit before taking its first lead at 12-10. The Hoosiers led 17-12 with 12 minutes remaining, but the Nittany Lions responded with a 10-0 run.
Indiana led for only 16 seconds over the final 11 minutes of the first half, and it trailed Penn State 39-37 at halftime. Both sides shot 60% or better from the field, 50% or better from distance and worse than 50% on free throws.
The Hoosiers and Nittany Lions went back-and-forth for much of the first 14 minutes of the second half. Penn State’s lead never extended beyond 5 points, but Indiana led for just under a minute and a half during the span. The two were tied four times until the Hoosiers broke through with just under six minutes remaining.
Galloway buried two 3-pointers in less than 40 seconds, turning Indiana’s 69-67 deficit into a 73-69 edge. The Hoosiers’ lead reached 80-73 with two and a half minutes remaining, but the Nittany Lions pulled within 3 points with 40 seconds left.
Penn State, however, missed its last three shots during the final 30 seconds, and a pair of free throws from Goode pushed Indiana’s advantage to an insurmountable 5-point lead.
Indiana returns to action at 6 p.m. Saturday against Washington inside Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa) and columnist Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
